# Smoked Out



## CeeGar (Feb 19, 2007)

Just a little article fyi. You may or may not have seen this....:ranger:

Cuba's cigar industry: Smoked out | The Economist


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## Zogg (Aug 31, 2010)

Interesting..


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## bcannon87 (Sep 8, 2010)

hmmmmm........ Pretty interesting read!


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## gasdocok (May 14, 2011)

Ok yeah, interesting, but what does it mean to all of us? Are prices going to change? Availability go down? Quality changes?


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## Perfecto Dave (Nov 24, 2009)

I don't know where you guys been buying but I've already seen a spike in prices with little to no sales product being offered. Seems like pricing has been on the steady rise.

I'll bet Mr.Garcia has not been sleeping comfortably at night.:spank:


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## CBR (Mar 31, 2010)

CeeGar said:


> Just a little article fyi. You may or may not have seen this....:ranger:
> 
> Cuba's cigar industry: Smoked out | The Economist


Damn! I don't know how I missed that article....thanks for the nudge!


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## Herf N Turf (Dec 31, 2008)

Rut roh. So it appears that when the 45m cigars that Garcia and his henchmen diverted run out, we'll be paying LCDH prices, IF any at all. Great.

This would certainly explain what Dave mentioned above and what I've been seeing. Habanos SA sales are down, the EUR is down, yet prices continue to rise. The reason: supply is beginning to dwindle and will ultimately dry up completely.


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## Oldmso54 (Jul 31, 2010)

Very interesting but I think it definitely means higher prices and a reduction of legitimate suppliers. Looks like my foray into the CC world just got tougher -LOL


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## bpegler (Mar 30, 2006)

The time frame on this article explains why certain grey market vendors went belly up. 

Really who cares about the cigars anyway.

The picture of that roller makes me want to visit Havana!

Sheesh!


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## Barefoot (Jun 11, 2010)

Hmmm. my vendor has not had new stock in a month.


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## Tritones (Jun 23, 2010)

Oh, my. I guess that means no big sale on CoRos anytime soon ... sigh ...


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## aea6574 (Jun 5, 2009)

I agree with others I guess this is why I have not seen any sales.

I too would like to see a sale on some CoRos.

Best regards, tony


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## szyzk (Nov 27, 2010)

Tritones said:


> Oh, my. I guess that means no big sale on CoRos anytime soon ... sigh ...


I was given some glass-top CoRos from a guy that works at my local Mexican restaurant. I can trade you some for more Chupacabras!

Don't mind the fingernails that are mixed into the cigars. The guy said that's totally what happens when cigars are handmade (except he said "totalmente a mano" which sounded VERY authentic!). And his burritos tasted spot on, so I know he's legit.

:banplease:


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## Mr_mich (Sep 2, 2010)

No more black market CC, hopefully my current suppliers are legit otherwise my first step in to CC may be my last. It's an expensive enough hobby as it is, if the prices go up even more i may have to back out.


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## TonyBrooklyn (Jan 28, 2010)

bcannon87 said:


> hmmmmm........ Pretty interesting read!





CBR said:


> Damn! I don't know how I missed that article....thanks for the nudge!





bpegler said:


> The time frame on this article explains why certain grey market vendors went belly up.
> 
> Really who cares about the cigars anyway.
> 
> ...


You guys mean there was an article:brick:
I was busy looking at the picture!:biggrin::mischief:


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## astripp (Jan 12, 2011)

What's wrong with legit prices? With the exception of Behikes and Espy's I spend more normally for NCs than CCs.


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## lebz (Mar 26, 2011)

bpegler said:


> The time frame on this article explains why certain grey market vendors went belly up.
> 
> Really who cares about the cigars anyway.
> 
> ...


I've been a few years back... Can be very beautiful!

Thanks for the article


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## Boudreaux (Jun 27, 2007)

Very interesting read.. Thanks Colin...


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## thrasher64 (Jun 4, 2009)

I've been waiting for a dip on the Euro.. But after reading this.. :bolt:



astripp said:


> What's wrong with legit prices? With the exception of Behikes and Espy's I spend more normally for NCs than CCs.


I've never been to a LCDH but I'm betting there a bit spendier than were used too.


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## Frinkiac7 (Dec 12, 2008)

thrasher64 said:


> I've never been to a LCDH but I'm betting there a bit spendier than were used too.


It varies a little depending on the country, but you're right..."a bit" is kind of an understatement. I guess should enjoy our good cigar fortune while it lasts.


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## TonyBrooklyn (Jan 28, 2010)

Its the taxes that make it cost more! Just like any other B&M.


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## thrasher64 (Jun 4, 2009)

Taxes! Arg.. Hoping the "duty free" prices we see now will stay unchanged then..


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## GoJohnnyGo (Nov 19, 2011)

I'm bumping this thread out of interest. I wasn't buying CC's a year ago when this article was written. Have you all seen the expected price increases or are they going to continue up?


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## TonyBrooklyn (Jan 28, 2010)

News: Manuel García Confirmed in Jail Posted by Charlie Minato on Thursday, April 28, 2011 · 1 Comments









Back in September of last year, Frank Herrera of CigarLaw and La Caridad del Cobre wrote a piece that highlighted some internet chatter regarding the status of the Vice President of Habanos S.A., Manuel García. A month or so later, it became pretty apparent that Mr. Garcia had been imprisoned on charges relating to corruption. Manuel was noticeably absent at the XIII Festival del Habano and Habanos refused to comment on his status. Those that were there and could find someone to talk, once again confirmed that he was in jail on fraud and corruption charges.
Earlier today, those rumors were confirmed by _The Economist_, who published an article entitled, "Cuba's cigar industry: Smoked out," stating that Mr. García was being charged of corruption. Interesting highlights from the article:
Since August 2010 (Manuel García) has been in jail, accused of masterminding graft on a grand scale.​ More specifically:
Cuban investigators believe they were able to do so because Mr García and ten of his staff, who also face trial, sold genuine cigars at a fraction of their normal price to black-market distributors in the Caribbean in return for bribes. Up to 45m cigars may have been sold this way. Since handmade _habanos _fetch up to £40 ($65) each in shops in the St James's district of London, the loss was considerable.​ Interestingly, they tried to get comment form Imperial Tobacco, parent of Altadis S.A., who owns a 50% stake in Habanos S.A.:
Imperial has made no comment on the affair. But like the government, it will hope that the new management team at Habanos preserves the lucrative monopoly in Cuba's most famous product.​ There has been lots of speculation as to the details of the corruption, _The Economist_, seems to indicate it has to do with grey market dealers, a fixture in the Cuban cigar industry, particularly for U.S. customers. The article describes the situation:
That did not prevent the small-scale peddling of black-market cigars on the streets of Havana. But in the past decade the system has faced a bigger threat from dozens of online cigar retailers operating mainly from Switzerland and the Caribbean. Many operated legitimately, but some offered improbably low prices.​ Other's have thought that perhaps the selling of raw materials, fraud regarding payments for packaging materials and illegal actions with legimitate Habanos suppliers, but there's been zero evidence.
Once the trial starts, we will know more details as to what exactly Manuel García is being accused of, but until then&#8230; it's going to be speculation. As his been mentioned, this is part of a much larger issue regarding corruption in Cuba and if this article is any indication, the future for Mr. García is not bright.


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